In a drum brake assembly a parking lever is pivotally secured to one brake shoe and a pawl pivotally secured to another brake shoe so that the lever and pawl cooperate with an extendible member to, respectively, provide a parking brake application and adjust for wear of the pair of brake shoes.
In response to the demand for fuel economy, automobile manufacturers are forced to reduce the size of most vehicles so that compact brake assemblies are necessary to fit within the available space. Moreover, as increasing manufacturing and repair costs deter commercial success it is necessary for a brake assembly to be easily assembled and disassembled in as little time as possible.